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Friday, July 31, 2015

Luckily I woke up yesterday feeling better than the day before. The Mr had to take a bath to loosen his muscles but that's because he's tight as a stretched rubbah band. HA! So after not feeling so broken, last night we went for a paddle in a new spot. Well, same lake but new launch with some islands and we thought it'd be a leisurely paddle. The current and chop in the winds provided some hard paddling for the Mr. so I would paddle and wait for him to catch up. We couldn't get much relief until we got into a marsh area but then we didn't paddle much so my first hour sucked calorie wise. Then it was kind of a long paddle on calm waters but when it was time to head back he left me in the dust a bit and I was getting tossed around. You had wind blowing from one direction, some weird chop from another and then if a boat went by you'd get wake from another side. I was waiting for a vortex to open up and swallow me or something. It was one weird session and I'll be honest I was glad when it was over.

Why this woman's incredibly honest weight loss picture is important (I feel sad she felt she had to share something she was not necessarily comfortable with just to stop the haters. If people thought it wasn't the same person, so what? I have a friend who people say the same about her comp pics and she showed her face, it's clearly her and people still say it's not the same person. Why? Because people can be judgmental douches.)

Thursday, July 30, 2015

After Tuesday night's abs/HIIT workout, I was a broken lady yesterday morning. The Mr wasn't faring much better. Everything in me hurt and as I hobbled down the stairs in the morning, I said "yoga night." I had to stretch out the hips, IT bands, lower back and all that jazz. My lats were still hurting from Monday night's workout so I was just a mess in general.

We've got a long weekend trip coming up in the Fall so I spent the morning and half the afternoon looking for boat launches and gave myself a headache. I did get the trip planned so that was out of the way. I hope that'll take the tension out of my face because I'm tired of having a clenched jaw. You ever get stressed and you can't quite pinpoint why? Maybe it's just a bunch of little things building up. Who knows.

We did the deep release stretch from Do Yoga With Me and while it hurt like a mutha when we were doing it, I always feel much looser afterward. Trust me, it won't last. I'll need to keep up rolling and stuff for that to stick. When we were done, I made dinner.

Our snack was lite kettle corn and both of ours were stale tasting so that's going back for a refund. That's something I forgot to mention on yesterdays post, if you don't like something at Trader Joe's, just bring back the item (or empty package) and you get a refund. No questions asked. I don't do it often but I've done it a few times. It makes every purchase there feel foolproof to a degree.

Then we settled in for Trip Flip and a night of relaxation to carry the zen into the evening.

When you're sore, do you do a stretching routine to loosen up?

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Wednesday, July 29, 2015

I had a few readers asking for tips on what we usually buy at Trader Joe's. While these things aren't on the grocery list every time, they're all lurking in our pantry, fridge or freezer from one trip or another.

Let's jump in.

Excellent peanut butter. Just peanuts and salt.

I use this on occasion like when we're having chicken tacos or enchiladas or maybe fish tacos depending on my mood.

The General Tsao's is super rare because it has so much sodium but if you are in the mood for a healthier version of take out, this stuff will hit the spot.

This is the Mr's favorite. He's trying to cut back even though it's only 40 calories but it is a yummy treat especially in the summer.

These are on the regular. We get three bags every grocery run. You have to watch it though because sometimes you get a bag where the sprouts look old or are super small.

If you're craving Thanksgiving, TJ's has some yummy turkey breasts to satisfy the itch.

This is an every now and then purchase but when we want a panini or if we want to use one of the middle slices as a crust for homemade pizza, this is the go to.

This is a great cheese for BBQ chicken pizza without a ton of sodium.

I'll occasionally get this for a little kick in our cheese. Especially good in our egg white omelets.

We get this every trip. It's nitrate free and 40% less fat. I'll use one strip and split it between us to crumble on brussels sprouts or one slice if I do an at home breakfast sandwich.

This is a good "topping" cheese blend. Crumbled on brussels, on mini English muffin pizzas or on the Mr's salad.

A bag of this stuff every time. Between adding it to salad or veggie burgers and tuna fish sandwiches. Delish!

A great way to have what feels like a fancy pants side. I'll microwave them for 2 minutes to get the freeze off and if I'm feeling sassy, I'll wrap a piece of bacon around it, season with garlic powder and fresh black pepper and grill it. So yummy!

I'm highly irritated they yanked my Parisian Carrots for this stuff but it'll do in a pinch.

Excellent ground turkey and only 120 cals for 4 ounces so even if you had a mondo burger of 8 ounces, it's only 240 cals and like over 50g of protein.

This polenta makes a good "bed" for fish. Yum!

A quick 25 calorie side that comes in handy when you want an entree with a little more calories but still want to get your veggies in.

Very rare buy because they're on the expensive side but there is nothing better to make a lobster roll than these babies.

Every TJ's run at least one of these goes in our cart. Super convenient to grab and grill or boil and shred for tacos without dealing with a huge breast.

This is one of the Mr's favorite sides. I'll do a side with dinner then have 2 servings left and will mix them with eggs the next morning for a breakfast favorite.

Their lite kettle corn is the perfect size for smuggling into the theater so you can still enjoy flavored popcorn without guilt.

This is by far the best chocolate ever. If we want a square (or two if we have the calories), this is the best stuff out there. A slightly bitter taste of true dark chocolate since it's over 70% cacao and a nice fruity finish. Drool!

Every now and again purchase but it is very good so if you like honey with your tea, get this.

These are awesome on pizzas, with tacos, on salads...okay, basically on everything. But their shelf life once opened isn't too long so be prepared to use them quickly!

Yummy taco shells. I microwave them for 1 minute before filling them and they have a great deep corn flavor.

This is a great cooking spray for seafood and when I occasionally do french toast, it gives a great crispy texture.

This is the Mr's favorite and it's a must buy every trip. It smells like apple pie especially if you sprinkle some pecans or other nuts on top as a garnish.

One of my favorite things to pick up though are their cards. I got 5 cards for the price I'd spend on one medium sized card at Hallmark. For a buck a piece, you can get a cute card with a sweet sentiment so I always peruse every time I'm there and always have a sympathy card on hand and a few birthday cards for either sex. Obviously their selection is limited but they do rotate out quite often so there's always something new to see.

So there's our haul from Trader Joe's for those who asked.

I will say don't get too attached to things because they like to discontinue foods for no reason so your favorite could fall victim with no warning!

Tuesday, July 28, 2015

Happy Birthday first guy who broke my heart. Why are there dates that I just can't eject from my brain? Not needed thank you.

Yesterday was a pretty low key day. I think it was much needed after a weekend on the water. I had good intentions of getting the board and yak all washed down with soapy water but the cleaner I used overwhelmed me and I had to stop after getting one side of each done. I tried all day to wash that stuff off of my hand and it would not come off. Finally the only thing that did it was some peppermint scrub I had. Thank the Lord because that stuff was ridiculous!

I perused Fitness Blender to pick out our form of strength torture for the night. It was a shoulders and lats combo that I didn't particularly care for. The last exercise was awkward and I burned half of what the top listed amount was and I'm always in line with that so I don't know what the deal was. I think if I would've went heavier that I would've injured myself so I probably won't throw that one into rotation for a while.

Dinner was the whole wheat/zucchini hybrid spaghetti with chicken for extra protein.

I got sucked into an episode of Cake Wars when they mentioned it would be Hello Kitty themed. Pretty interesting cakes and of course I can never seem to predict the winners of these things.

I needed to unwind mentally so I threw on KCSM in San Francisco and listened to the Jazz Oasis and brewed a cup of our Charleston tea.

I told you it was a boring day. They can't all be adventures!

It's supposed to be 90 today. Less than 60 days til Fall.

How do you get stinky chemical stuff off of your hands?

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Monday, July 27, 2015

It was quite the weekend. We went on our planned paddling outing and scouted out a new place we can go after breakfast. We stopped by a deli in town to pick up sandwiches and stuff for a lunch break. The trek we were planning was going to be our first 5 miler and of course temps and humidity were going to be around 90.

The Mr got our travel cooler and strapped it to his board and we put a blanket in the dry bag.

I enjoyed a leisurely paddle to the lilies.

We were about 90 minutes in before we said we'd head to the beach to eat lunch. Of course that didn't mean we were anywhere near the beach. We still had about an hour paddle time ahead of us.

I was so glad we brought our Hawaiian Sun Passion Orange drink because that stuff is refreshing on a hot day at lunchtime. (Hot water just doesn't taste quite as good)

We enjoyed our lunch, the Mr refilled the water bottles, burned his bare feet on the hot sand/sidewalks and it was time to head back. The beach in the summer is so not my scene. Everyone was loud and annoying so I was more than happy to be in the peace of the middle of the lake again. I was also thankful for the very limited amounts of time the sun hid behind a cloud for 2 minutes at a time. It just zaps all of your energy.

It hit my distance and calorie goal for the paddle!

I thought I was going to be much more sore on Sunday but I was actually ready to go out again for a more leisurely paddle because the weather looks to be disgusting this week. Lots of pop ups all day long so we had to bide our time and go for evening water fun.

It was quite adventurous for what was supposed to be a leisurely time, I think I'll call this the "now I've seen it all" paddle. We got everything blown up in record time and were on the water by 7pm. At 7:03pm, I began taking on water and my ass was wet. Thankfully we weren't too far away so I paddled to the nearby landing and the Mr found one of my water hole do-hickeys (technical term) was open and letting water in. We plugged up, dumped the water and went on our merry way. We wanted to hit a cove we missed on the last outing so we explored. It went back further than we thought and we conversed and saw two people quickly buttoning up on the banks of the water. Sorry people, public park...you're old enough to know better...and we had to do the same thing when we were dating and that's the chance you take, yo. As the Mr said..."cockblocked!" Once we decided to head back, the night fisherman were out and we saw a full bearded hipster smoking a hooka in his kayak.

The rest of the paddle was pretty uneventful but peaceful. We were out for just under 2 hours and I got a nice little burn in for a Sunday night...

We've got a paddleboarding lesson set up with a friend this Sunday so I'd like to get one other session in toward the end of the week if the weather allows. I don't think 90 degree paddles are my thing but if we can get out for a nice night paddle when the sun isn't zapping my energy, I'm down. Plus it's better than being in the basement doing a traditional workout.

What did y'all do this weekend?

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Friday, July 24, 2015

It's been a long week and I'm glad for the weekend. We took our first guest out paddleboarding last night so now we've got 3 vessels to dry out in the garage today. It's too bad my other friend is recovering from surgery last week because it'd be the perfect weekend to meet her halfway and take her out too. Maybe by our Fall birthdays.

We've got a nice weekend ahead so we may be packing up the board/yak and heading out. One day I will make it to a farmers market...it'll just probably be on a rainy day. Can you believe a week from today is the last day of July!? I'd better get my booty to a market before they're all done for the season!

What are you guys doing this weekend?

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Thursday, July 23, 2015

I started getting bombarded with catalogs and emails this past week with those words stamped all over them. (Hey, it's only 61 days away!) While paddling (and lower than normal temps) is making summer somewhat bearable for me for once, y'all know Fall is my favorite time of year so I'm going to share what's been catching my eye for the upcoming season.

I love the way these look, giving that pumpkin feel but could be used throughout the season especially if you're in a warmer weather climate. Or you could string them across a mantle for a pretty amber glow. At almost $40 for 10 lights I'm going to have to wait for a sale but if I can snag them at a good price, I'm going to!

If I had a big ol barn party house where I hosted fabulous holiday gatherings, I would have this everywhere. It just looks like harvest season and you sprinkle some real pumpkins in there and that's one fine looking arrangement!

I'm thinking the only way you can improve upon pumpkin bread is by making it in this friggin' ADORABLE loaf pan!!! Holy crap man, I mean look at the cute pumpkins and leaves on top! Not only that but you could totally hang that on the wall as a decoration with its bronze finish and when you're ready to bake some bread...BAM...it's right there! Definitely want this!

If I hosted the holidays and I had a big fabulous turkey sliced up, it would go on this platter. Though it could be cute leaning against a shelf as a decoration too. Yeah, that's it...it's a decoration and I know this because here's another shot of it...

Sold!

So there's a little peek of what's coming your way this Fall.

When do you think companies should start giving their Fall previews?

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Wednesday, July 22, 2015

The basement guy was here right on the nose yesterday which is rare these days so it was much appreciated. I guess he had calls from 25 other homes in our hood so the rainy summer has taken its toll on many of us. It appears that it's just a matter of moisture being trapped between the blanket insulation and the wall.

No mold or mushrooms or anything. (Seriously, he told us some jacked up stories!) About two years after our place was built having that insulation was no longer deemed part of code and ends up causing more harm than good. He said first phase is to pull down the insulation, keep a fan on it to dry it out and see if we end up with more moisture issues and go from there. We're scheduled for a dry four days so it'll be a good time to stop the sponge effect.

We yanked down the insulation wearing our goggles, gloves and masks and got that wall bundled and out the door. The right side definitely took more of a hit than the left.

I suppose we can thank our fur angel for that when out of anger of having run of the whole basement instead of the whole house, she tore down the left corner of our insulation like 10 years ago.

I guess she gave it room to breathe?

I asked about using that masonry lock paint stuff that's been around forever and he said not to go there because it has latex mixed in and it helps breed mold if moisture comes in. He recommended something Sherwin Williams sells or for really bad basements this commercial stuff that requires you to be out of your house for 3 days with constant fans sucking out the toxic fumes but you'll never have another water issue again. I'm hoping we're not in the latter category.

Due to the current state of the basement, this also meant the workout area was in a bit of a shambles so we went to the park for our workout.

It was only 82 degrees but with all the ground saturation and being in the woods, the humidity and bugs were no joke. We were running low on hummus and I needed it for dinner for BBQ chicken naan pizza.

The Mr certainly wouldn't have wanted to miss that one since it's his favorite!

No idea what we're going to do for a workout tonight with all of the crap in the middle of the basement but we'll figure something out. We sure as heck aren't skipping!

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I've lost over 200 lbs the old fashioned way with some more to go. I'm doing this with my hubby (The Mr) and he has lost 190 lbs so far. I wanted to share my journey as well and give people with a lot of weight to lose hope that this can be done without surgery or cutting out entire food groups! Passionate about photography, cooking, traveling, DIY and anything 80's.

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